| ID | Category | Risk | Evidence | Impact | Plays | Owner & By When |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R1 | Paper |
MSA redlines stuck — Aisha (legal) unresponsive for weeks
Known |
• MSA and POC terms given to Aisha weeks ago with no response • Aisha deprioritized MSA while focused on POC terms (now dropped since POC is dev-only) • Deeplaxmi was unaware POC moved to dev-only until 3/2 call • No confirmation legal has begun reviewing SSA • SSA needs to be refreshed (product supplement changes) |
Critical path blocker. Even with successful POC, cannot close without executed MSA. Every week of legal silence adds a week to close timeline. |
P6
P3
|
Deeplaxmi by 4/1 (follow up with Aisha). Ted/Conor escalate if no response by 4/7 |
| R2 | Timing |
POC execution risk — engineering teams may “go dark”
Known |
• Rich explicitly flagged pattern of engineering teams going silent, struggling, and abandoning evaluations • Deeplaxmi acknowledged this has happened before at Ticketmaster • Chester and Iqbal just onboarded to Slack/accounts as of 3/18 (late start) • Krista hedged on committing to POC end date • Web experimentation POC keeps getting deferred while FX progresses |
POC drift kills deal momentum. Brad's prototype has a shelf life. If web POC stalls while FX progresses, creates uneven evaluation. |
P5
P3
|
Zach — proactive Slack weekly. Conor — set up weekly cadence by 3/28 |
| R3 | Technical |
Edge delivery gap on Fastly — web snippet may not achieve zero-flicker
Known |
• Web experimentation edge delivery not available on Fastly today • Standard snippet with best-practice implementation is the current approach • If snippet doesn’t achieve zero flicker, fallback is product conversation to accelerate Fastly support • Personnel changes on Optimizely product side (Dehan possibly leaving) • FX architecture (Brad’s bucketing service) already solved this for feature flags |
Flicker elimination is THE primary decision criterion. If web snippet flickers, entire web experimentation value proposition collapses. |
P5
P10
|
Conor/Rich — Britt Hall outreach by 4/4. Simone — best-practice snippet implementation during POC |
| R4 | Commercial |
Budget constraint — $500K available vs. $882K proposed
Known |
• 2025 pricing ended with TM requesting Monetate-level pricing; Optimizely above that • Mobile is the largest scope/pricing variable and remains TBD • Kirk’s mobile team not ready (focused on Sawmill’s mobile-first build) • No pricing conversation has occurred since 2025 • Pricing expectations may be anchored to Monetate levels |
Deal value at risk of significant compression. May need to scope to web+FX only (no mobile) to fit budget. Monetate pricing anchor requires reset. |
P6
P11
|
Ted/Rich/Conor + Deeplaxmi — pricing meeting by 4/11. Prepare Monetate comparison and scope models |
| R5 | Political |
Sawmill (CPO) access gated behind POC progress — no executive engagement path
Known |
• Deeplaxmi explicitly won’t raise CEO-to-Sawmill intro until positive POC feedback • Sawmill formerly at Block (550 experiments/year with Optimizely) — natural alignment • No response from Deeplaxmi on executive connection request • Sawmill is the ultimate authority on experimentation investment |
Cannot build executive-level commitment without Sawmill. Budget ceiling and urgency constrained at Deeplaxmi’s level. Sawmill could accelerate or kill the deal. |
P1
P3
|
Ted/Rich — prepare CEO pitch for when POC delivers. Conor — ensure demo-worthy POC results by early April |
| R6 | Timing |
No close target date — open-ended evaluation with multiple unknown security/procurement gates
Known |
• Krista confirmed no date for wrapping POC or completing legal • “There’s always another step” beyond initial security submission • Live Nation InfoSec sign-off required (no named contact) • GDPR/CCPA privacy review required • Additional security review required before platform onboarding • Multiple internal review teams involved |
Without close target, deal has no internal urgency. Each unknown gate adds weeks to months. Risk of evaluation extending through Q2 into Q3+. |
P6
P8
|
Ted/Conor — push for mutual action plan during Deeplaxmi meeting. Krista/Aisha — map full procurement steps by 4/11 |
| R7 | Technical |
Web experimentation POC keeps getting deferred to FX
Known |
• Web POC deferred in 1/28 kickoff (no time) • Krista dropped off before web portion in 2/27 sync • Separate web session had to be scheduled repeatedly • Web experimentation requires separate third-party code review (just initiated 3/3) • Web kicked off 3/18 but implementation just starting |
Web is part of deal scope and Krista’s primary use case. If web POC doesn’t complete alongside FX, deal may close for FX-only at lower value. |
P5
|
Conor/Zach — ensure web POC gets dedicated attention in weekly cadence. Krista — third-party code review by 4/11 |
| R8 | Political |
Mobile scope uncertainty creates pricing ambiguity and future friction
Assumed |
• Kirk’s team “not now” but Deeplaxmi expects leadership will ask about app testing within months • Mobile inclusion is the largest MAU/pricing variable • Kirk wanted deeper technical dive that hasn’t materialized • Peacock case study sent to Kirk — no response |
If mobile excluded, creates reopen risk when leadership asks. If included, budget doesn’t support it. Unresolved scope creates commercial ambiguity. |
P2
P6
|
Conor — get definitive mobile in/out from Deeplaxmi during pricing meeting. Prepare both scope models |